Maricopa County Community College District has no plans to appeal a recent Arizona Supreme Court ruling that prohibits Arizona colleges from giving in-state tuition to students known as "dreamers."

"We have not had any public discussion at a board meeting, and I do not anticipate any discussion at a future board meeting," Maricopa Community Colleges Governing Board President Laurin Hendrix said.

The board met earlier this month in executive session to receive legal advice on the civil lawsuit broughtby the Arizona Attorney General's Office in 2013.

Under the Arizona Supreme Court ruling, students who are in Arizona under the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, can no longer pay the lower, in-state tuition rate. Because the court's opinion dealt with federal law, Maricopa Community Colleges have the option to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which could then decide whether to hear the case.

But a governing board vote in a public session would be needed to authorize legal fees for an appeal. The board does not have a vote scheduled on the matter.

Out-of-state tuition is more than three times higher at Maricopa Community Colleges: $327 per credit hour this spring vs. $86 for in-state students.

DACA recipients also aren't eligible for federal or state financial aid; they rely on private scholarships or their own money to pay for school.

Jocelyn Lopez, a biological science student at ASU, speaks during the rally outside the Arizona Supreme Court in Phoenix during the hearing over dreamers' in-state tuition on April 2, 2018. Nick Oza/The Republic

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DACA students say the recent court decision means it will take them longer to get through school; the higher cost means they can take fewer credits per semester. Other students may have to drop out of school periodically to work full time.

Ezequiel Santos, 26, is a DACA recipient who has taken classes for three semesters at Mesa Community College. He predicts it will take him another three to four years to complete his associate's degree in digital arts under the higher tuition rates.

He would like to see the governing board reconsider and vote to appeal the decision.

"They have definitely been supportive in the past," he said.

The Arizona Supreme Court issued a decision in April, unanimously deciding that the Maricopa Community Colleges could not grant in-state tuition rates to DACA recipients. The court followed this action by issuing a full opinion in May, explaining that young immigrants protected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program aren’t entitled to in-state tuition because they aren’t lawfully present in the country for the purposes of public benefits under federal law.

The opinion said that while DACA recipients are "lawfully present" for the purposes of receiving an employment authorization document, these documents do not automatically make them eligible for in-state tuition.

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State universities adopt different rate for some DACA students

The Arizona Board of Regents, who oversee the three state universities, have said some DACA recipients may qualify for a non-resident tuition rate, which is 150 percent of in-state levels, or $14,751 next school year at Arizona State University.

To qualify, DACA students must have attended an Arizona high school for at least three years and have graduated from an Arizona high school.

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Opinion polls have long suggested that most Americans want to protect 'dreamers,' the young undocumented immigrants who have spent most of their lives in this country. But those protections have been slow to materialize. Consider the timeline: Photo by Tom Tingle/The Republic

2001: The first Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (Dream) Act — the legislation that gave 'dreamers' their name — is introduced to offer a path to citizenship for immigrants who were brought here illegally as children. It fails, as do subsequent versions. Nick Oza/The Republic

2010: The Dream Act of 2010gets closer than previous attempts to passing but dies in the Senate. It offers a path to citizenship if young immigrants complete two years of college or serve in the military and complete a background check, among other requirements. Nick Oza/The Republic

2017: Attorneys general threaten to sue if Trump does not rescind DACA. The president sets a 2018 expiration date for the program, despite pleas from some Republican lawmakers and business leaders to wait, and calls on Congress to pass a fix for dreamers. David Wallace/The Republic

2017: A revised, bipartisan version of the Dream Act is introduced, but no action was taken before the end of the year. The bill offers permanent legal status to dreamers who enroll in college, join the military or find a job, among other requirements. Sam Greene

2018: A federal judge gives DACA recipients a temporary reprieve from Trump's decision to rescind the program. Congress and the president continue to discuss solutions, though funding for a border wall and threats over a government shutdown bog down talks. Photo by AP

2019: President Trump is reportedly willing to offer dreamers permanent protections from deportation, along with money for border security, to resolve a government shutdown. Both sides have dug in over funding for Trump's border wall, and some say the offer to dreamers isn't enough. Photo by Carolyn Kaster, AP

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Rodrigo Dorador, a DACA recipient, urged Maricopa governing board members at a meeting earlier this month to consider a tuition rate for DACA students that is similar to what the Arizona Board of Regents adopted.

The Maricopa Community College governing board has not set a new special tuition rate for DACA recipients and so far doesn't appear to be moving in that direction.

The board on Tuesday night will vote on new rates that lower tuition by $1 per credit hour for all students, which includes DACA recipients.

A notice on the college district's web site says, "Unfortunately, due to the recent decision by the Arizona Supreme Court regarding in-state tuition for DACA recipients, the tuition rate you see today might change. Please contact your Admissions and Records office with any questions."

Long journey through the courts

The governing board's decision not to pursue an appeal in the foreseeable future ends what has been a five-year journey through the courts.

The issue of dreamers and college tuition has long been controversial in Arizona. In 2006, Arizona voters approved Proposition 300, which denied in-state tuition rates to students without legal status.

In 2012, President Obama created the DACA policy, allowing young people without serious criminal records who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children to apply for deportation deferments and work permits. Department of Homeland Security officials have emphasized that work permits granted to people approved for DACA bestow legal presence, but not legal status.

Maricopa Community Colleges took the position that DACA students with work permits were eligible for in-state tuition.

Presiding Judge Kenton Jones wrote that the 2012 DACA program did not confer legal status. He said federal immigration law allows each state to decide on optional benefits for DACA recipients, and Arizona law bars in-state tuition.

In the summer of 2017, the Maricopa Community Colleges governing board voted 4-3 to appeal the ruling to the Arizona Supreme Court.

Board members warned DACA students at the time that the appeal might not be successful and encouraged students to "load up" on courses while the lower rates were in effect.